Woman's ex-boyfriend sentenced for trespassing at funeral home where her body disappeared

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Julie Mott's ex-boyfriend was sentenced to two days in jail last week after he pleaded guilty to trespassing on the property of Mission Park, a local funeral home that a jury recently found was negligent in the disappearance of Mott's body.

Bill Wilburn was charged with criminal trespass in June 2016, about a year after Mott's body went missing from her casket. Following the disappearance, Wilburn began harassing several people involved in the case in an effort to get more information.

[post_ads]According to one police report, Wilburn called Mission Park staff more than 200 times in one day. Police issued him a criminal trespass notice on Sept. 2, 2015, forbidding his entrance onto Mission Park property.

On June 26 and 29, 2016, he was spotted by employees and captured on security camera footage attempting to gain entrance to Mission Park North, according to police reports. He was later arrested on two charges of criminal trespassing.

According to court records, he pleaded guilty to one of the charges on March 28 and was sentenced to two days in jail. He also faces a $100 fine, according to officials in County Court 12, where Wilburn's trial was held.

Julie Mott died at age 25 on Aug. 8, 2015, of complications from cystic fibrosis. Her body was delivered to Mission Park North in the 3400 block of Cherry Ridge Drive, where a memorial service was held on Aug. 15.

The next morning her casket was found empty. One of the hinges on the casket had been damaged, and the bier on which it was resting was found in an "unnatural" position by an exit door, according to expert testimony given in the civil case. According to a police report, there were no signs of forced entry, and the building's security system was never triggered.

Her body was never found, and the question of how the body disappeared has not been answered.

In mid-February, Mission Park was found to be negligent in the disappearance of Mott's body. A jury awarded Mott's parents, Sharlotte and Timothy, $8 million.

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Caleb Downs is a crime reporter for mySA.com. Read more of his stories here.| cdowns@mysa.com | Twitter: @calebjdowns